Affirming LGBTQIA+ Youth in Inpatient Psychiatric Settings

Abstract

Decades of research show that LGBTQIA+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and others) youth experience higher rates of psychiatric illness and present to mental health settings more often than their heterosexual, cisgender peers. General guidelines for working with LGBTQIA+ youth exist; however, little has been written about the unique challenges facing LGBTQIA+ youth and their families in inpatient psychiatric settings and strategies for ameliorating them. As LGBTQIA+ youth attempt suicide at much higher rates than their peers, inpatient settings see a disproportionate number of these youth. Providing LGBTQIA+ youth with affirming care during their inpatient admission therefore has the potential to shift mental illness trajectories of youth, increase family support, and reduce the number of lives lost to suicide. In this article, we outline specific barriers to affirming care in inpatient child and adolescent psychiatric settings and propose practical strategies that providers can implement to overcome these barriers.